Unraveling of Avery Snow, The (7 page)

Chapter Nine

Rendezvous

Kerri’s plans for the wedding were keeping her head in the clouds lately at work. I had only spoken to her a handful of times, mostly about how much more compliant her mom was being towards her. She insisted it was my comment that did the trick. I never wanted to step out of my bounds and make anyone mad, especially Kerri, but she thanked me numerous times for sticking up for her that day. Luckily I could see how planning a wedding could make you crazy. All of the things involved seemed too much for me to handle. As the maid of honor I had my own responsibilities, too; like planning her bachelorette party. I couldn’t wait!

I had talked to several of her friends
and I had a pretty good idea of what to do and where to go. Vegas baby!

She took me there on my birthday a few years before and it was a blast. Besides
, isn’t that where you’re supposed to go when you’re getting married and want to celebrate your last days of singledom?

I walked into her office that day to talk to her about it. Just to see what she thought
, but I knew she would love the idea. Once I entered, I noticed she didn’t look in the mood to talk. She had her head down on her desk while taking deep breaths.

“U
h, need some help?” I asked, closing the door behind me. If anyone else saw her they would for sure give her hell.

“Avery, I am so panicked about this wedding. I swear I think we should just run off and elope.” She kept her head down and I sat in the chair opposite her.

“What can I do?”

She lifted her head slightly and smiled. “You’re such a good friend and it’s nice of you to offer, but I can’t ask you to do anymore.”

She had asked Ianni to help with the flowers, her friend Astrid was doing the table settings, and I was planning the bachelorette party and shower. I also took on the duty of making sure everyone knew their jobs and did them as instructed. Astrid and I hadn’t met yet. She lived in Washington, so we only spoke on the phone. She was very pleasant and I looked forward to meeting her. I had definitely come out of my shell in the last few months.

“Kerri,” I began, “You’re my best friend. I am here to help you.” She smiled at me and took my hand from across her desk.

“I know, but honestly I don’t know what is wrong with me.” I had a feeling it was pre-wedding jitters. The wedding was only a few months away, and she was understandably nervous.

“But if I can think of anything
, I will call you,” she said as she squeezed my hand. “Love you girl.”

“Love you, too.” I left her office and finished my rounds.

As I clocked out I felt the exhaustion overwhelm me. I needed my bed in a bad way. I checked my phone for missed calls, and sure enough Dallas had called. I called him right away so that he wouldn’t get worried. He knew I was getting off work, so he would be expecting a call from me. The phone rang once before he answered, “Hello,” he said exasperated.

“Hi
, it’s me.” There was a pause then he finally spoke.

“Oh
, hi. I had a bad dream. You woke me up, thank God,” he said, sounding out of breath and tired.

“A bad dream
? About what?” I was again forced to think of my vision of Annabelle having a nightmare. How I soothed my daughter’s fears. “I’ll be right over.” He mumbled an okay and I drove towards his house.

When I pulled up I notice
d Landon’s new car in the driveway. I couldn’t help but love it. “Boys and their toys,” I giggled to myself. When I passed the car I noticed someone sitting in it. I jumped slightly, but realized it was Landon. He rolled the window down and his face looked so sullen it shocked me. His normal expression of confidence was completely washed away and his blonde hair hung heavily in his eyes. He brushed it aside and I saw dark circles rounding his eyes.

“Didn’t mean to scare you,” he s
tarted. “I can’t sleep.” He leaned back against the headrest.

“You too?”
First Dallas with the bad dreams and now Landon can’t sleep. Did I have to console them both? I had to focus on my reason for being here and it wasn’t for Landon. He was a grown man who could work out his own problems. “Sorry, hope you get some sleep in your car,” I said awkwardly as I walked away.

“Wait!” I turned. Suddenly
he was out of his car and facing me, his face tormented and painful. He grabbed me by the arms and squeezed with his fingers.

“What?” I asked, wincing
at his grip.

“Nothing, Dallas needs you
… he’s uh, having nightmares lately,” he said as he let me go. I rubbed my arm where it hurt the most. Landon was definitely acting strange. First the card, then the dinner, and now this. He turned from me and walked down the street. I was worried that he wasn’t okay, but I had to see Dallas.

I entered his room quietly and took off my work clothes. He lay sprawled out among the covers as I approached him. Yes, he was having nightmares and he could survive, but I knew a lot about what dreams could do to you. I had to make sure these nightmares didn’t involve Dark Guides. I
got into the bed, with only my bra and panties on, and he awoke with a start.

“Avery, you scared me.” I laughed and he looked me over as I lay next to him. His body was tense and sweaty from the nightmares, but it was beautiful. His arms full of his tattoos
were like a map of his life. The memories that he didn’t want to fade, the things he held dear, and the pictures he felt were soothing. He put them there as a reminder of who he was inside, even though they were displayed on the outside. I traced the lines of them until I reached his chest. I felt his skin get chills at my touch. He leaned in and kissed me feverishly as he pulled me towards him.

“What about your bad dreams?” I asked as I pulled away from his lips.

“I don’t know anything about that, now that you’re here.”




The next morning Dallas greeted me in bed with hot pancakes and
bacon. I ate like I hadn’t eaten in forever. I was overly hungry after last night with Dallas, and was completely happy with my life at that moment. Watching Dallas dress before me was a vision every girl should see first thing in the morning. He chose a blue button-down shirt and a pair of khaki pants. “Why so dressy this morning?” I asked as he checked himself in the mirror.

“Oh
, I have a meeting today with the staff. Nothing too long. I will be back in an hour or so,” he explained as he put his shoes on. “But before I go, I have a proposition for you.” I was intrigued. Any proposition from Dallas had to be good.

“Go on.
”              

“How would you like to drive to
Monterey Bay and stay for the weekend?” Monterey was beyond beautiful. The coastline alone was worth the drive. I had been there with my aunt years ago when we went on a winery tour. It was one of those vacations you took and didn’t want to go home.

“Yes!” I shouted. Then I realized I had to work this weekend. After taking so much time off last year I cou
ldn’t do that again this year, not with the wedding coming up. “I can’t Dallas. Not this weekend, I have to work.”

“No you don’t. I called Kerri and she fixed it so you are off and she is working your shift.” I was excited but felt terrible she was working my shift, especially in her state.

“Are you sure she was okay with this?” I asked him.

“Princess, she suggested it!” I leapt off the bed and into his arms. I
couldn’t wait to be alone with him, having him all to myself. We had tried it once before, but complications had arisen. Complications named Dedrick and Benjamin. This was our chance to be alone together with no one around. Just him, the California coast, and me.

“Good
, we leave tonight, so go home and pack. I will pick you up at five.” He kissed me and left. I dressed hurriedly and ran down the stairs to grab my keys, running smack into Landon on the way down. He stumbled, but caught himself on the handrail.

“Whoa, someone’s excited about their trip,” he joked. He still looked like he did
last night, maybe even worse.

“You knew about it?” I asked. He nodded.

“Yeah, have fun.” There was something in his voice that left me cold. As I watched, he walked up the stairs and didn’t turn back.




I packed my bag with every intention to
not forget anything, although I knew once we got there I would realize I had forgotten something. The plus side to being a plain Jane was I packed very lightly. Ianni was still at work so I had the apartment to myself for now. I made a fresh cup of coffee and sat out on the balcony to watch for Dallas. I remembered how many times I had watched the sun rise from this same spot. Those days were long gone and I was thankful for it. The sooner my life went back to normal the better.

I ended up
waiting a whole hour past five, when Dallas said he would be here. I called several times and got no answer. Of course panic set in about 45 minutes earlier. Finally, after pacing my apartment over and over, he called. I answered in a rush.

“
Are you all right? Is everything okay?”

“Listen, there are some complications,” he started. “I have to can
cel on our weekend.” I was dumbstruck. Finally we had a chance for us to getaway and it turned out to be too good to be true. I sighed heavily as he continued to talk about some big-time food critic coming into Evolve tomorrow night. He said how sorry he was, but all I heard was excuses. I had lived a life of not being able to trust and rely on a man, especially since my father left me when I was young. I felt a deep sadness that Dallas would do this to me, too.

“First Valentine
’s and now this,” I said nervously. I hadn’t wanted to bring up my unhappiness of Valentine’s Day disaster, for fear that we would get into a fight. When a relationship is new you’re afraid to voice your opinions because you don’t want to argue, but this was enough. I had had it.

“I said I was sorry for
Valentine’s Day, Avery. You know, you may not think work is important because of your job, but I do. This is my career.” My mouth literally fell open in shock.

“My job?
What is that supposed to mean?” Now my voice was higher and I was starting to get angry.

“You
know, your job. It’s not a real career.”

“It’s not?” I asked.

“No, it’s not. You basically babysit old people for a living. You can’t call that a career, Avery. I am sorry to cancel, but my job takes precedence over our trip.” I heard him loud and clear. It was more important than me. I swallowed hard at the realization that Dallas wasn’t perfect after all. He had some major faults that were being shown to me at this very second.

“So you’re cance
ling on me, and to make yourself feel better, you are insulting me?”

“No, that’s not what this is. I want you to go. If you don’t then they will charge my credit card.”

“Fine, Ianni and I will go.” I started pacing again out of frustration. He was lucky he wasn’t here or else I would be throwing dishes at him.

“I need her here, she i
s the best presence we have,” he said.

“Wait,” I paused, realizing he was saying
he needed her because she was pretty. “You need her looks to help you get a good rating?”

    
“Come on, Avery, we both know I didn’t hire her for her desire to work or her skills. Honestly, she is the best-looking one here and she helps bring in more customers. People see her and want to stay for dinner. “

“I
can’t believe you are really saying this? I don’t know who I am talking to right now. Is this Landon or Dallas?” The way he talked about her reminded me of how Landon would talk, like women were prizes to show off. It wasn’t the Dallas I knew and loved.

    
“She’s a fallen angel. She needs the work and I need her looks,” he whispered. I was sure he didn’t want everyone to hear him say that. “You know I wanted to get away with you, to take us out of all of this weirdness. My cousin is a zombie lately, he hardly sleeps. And Ianni is like a newborn that has to be taught everything. I just wanted to get away from the entire weird world we now live in. I am truly sorry that I can’t go. Please, go without me.” And he hung up. He actually hung up on me! I slammed my phone down on my counter and took a deep breath. Without thinking I grabbed my bag and left. I was not going on this rendezvous alone and I knew exactly who to take with me.

Chapter Ten

Ache

I knocked on the door, trying to ignore the bad feeling in my stomach. Butterflies danced around and my palms were sweaty. I wasn’t sure this was going to go over well with Dallas, but I knew what I was doing. The door opened and the sun shone in his blue eyes.

“Hey, what are you still doing in town?” Landon asked as he shielded his eyes from the sun.

“Long story, here’s the short version. Pack your bags, Dallas can’t go so you’re coming with me,” I said as I pushed myself into the house. He stood at the door, dumbfounded no doubt. “Let’s go because we don’t have much daylight left.”

“Wait a
second. You’re taking me on your little getaway? Why?” He stood in front of me, his hair a complete disaster and looking every bit the lost little puppy. I knew it was crazy, but Dallas said it himself, Landon was a zombie lately. He needed to get away as much as I did.

“You heard me right. You are my friend
, am I correct?”

“Yeah
, but …”

“No but
s. We are going to be staying at the Monterey Ocean Resort. We will wine and dine and have spa treatments. You will like it. Trust me, you need it,” I admitted.

“Wait, why do I need it?” he asked with caution.

“You are sleeping in your car, Landon. Need I say more?” He thought for a second before answering me, and then a smile grew on his face.

“Nope.”
He walked up the stairs and turned around quickly. “One thing. Can we get mani pedi’s?” he asked jokingly. Laughing, I nodded.

“Of course.”

It didn’t take Landon long to pack. Honestly I didn’t think he brought more than two outfits. His small bag sat in the back seat. I knew Landon to love his clothes. He was always dressed to impress, but lately he was becoming more like me: jeans and t-shirts. The sun started to lower over the Pacific Ocean as we headed down the highway. I noticed Landon staring out at the view so I pulled over at an observation point. We sat for a few minutes to soak up the view, neither one of us saying a word. Then I continued onward toward our hotel.




The hotel was lavish
. It draped over the edge of a cliff and looked out over the ocean. The European design was so elegant I didn’t feel comfortable walking in with my jeans and flip-flops. The lady at the desk had distaste towards my outfit all over her face, but I held my head high anyway. The reservations were under Cooper and we were whisked to our room on the fourth floor. The bellboy opened the door to a massive suite, which was decked out in emerald green and gold. The living room held a fireplace that was already lit. The kitchenette had better countertops then my own place. Landon thanked the bellboy and tipped him as I scoped out the bedroom. One king-size bed sat in the middle of a marble floored room, with its very own fireplace.

“I’ll take the couch,” Landon offered. I hadn’t gotten to that part of this whole idea. Yes
, I decided to bring him along, but I totally spaced concerning the sleeping arrangements.

“Oka
y sounds good.” I walked back into the living room and noticed Landon on the terrace. I met him outside and looked out over the same view. It was more beautiful than my view, that was for sure. There is just something magical about the coast. Something that I couldn’t quite grasp. The feeling of belonging by the seashore, or the feeling of longing to.

“This is very expensive,” Landon started, “I feel completely guilty now coming here with you. I shouldn’t have.” I felt terrible myself. Truth was
, I was mad at Dallas, but I honestly did want to show Landon there is life outside his house. He had become a shut in and a womanizer. The worst things to become in my opinion.

“Landon, you didn’t do anything wrong. We are friends and Dallas knows that.” Does he? “We are here to help get you out of your funk
, so to speak.”

He set his gaze on me and it chilled me to the bone. His eyes were familiar and beautiful. It was hard to look at him
, especially now. The way the moon hit his face and the way his hair still hung in his eyes, it made me weak.

“First we must eat. They have a decent
restaurant in the lobby. You wanna try it?” I asked, trying to distract myself.

“What?
Oh yeah, food.” He seemed a little distracted as well. Was it me? No, it couldn’t possibly be me. “I’ll change.” He grabbed his bag and went into the bathroom. I headed towards the bedroom and flopped down on the bed. What was I doing bringing him here? I could possibly have just ruined my relationship with Dallas.

“Tell me you’re not feeling guilty.” I looked up to see
Lillith standing at the foot of my bed. “This is the best idea you have ever had, Avery!” She was no doubt happy about my choice. Even if I worried about what Dallas would think, she wanted this to happen.

“It’s completely not what you think,
Lillith,” I whispered.

“Oh no?
Then what is it?” she said rather loudly.

“Keep your voice down, he might hear you? As for what it is, it’s me being a good friend,
because he is sad and lonely. He needs friends.” She bit her lip and cracked a smile. She didn’t believe me. Hell, I didn’t believe me, but there was no way on earth I would admit that to her.

“Avery, you’re killing your heart by not being with him,” she whispered now. A soft knock at the door interrupted us. But she had gone, leaving green feathers on the floor.

“You okay in there?” Landon asked. I took a deep breath. Was I okay?

“Yep
, be out in a sec.” Was I killing my heart? It certainly felt like I was. I had an ache that was unexplainable in my chest. It was like I was dying inside. But if I felt that while I was with him, then how would I have such pain if he were the one for me? Wouldn’t the ache go away whenever he was in my presence?

I changed my clothes as well, putting on a blue and white dress that
Ianni had bought me for no reason. She had said she wanted to see it on me. I suppose I should thank her again because it did look nice.

I threw on my navy blue flats and brushed out my hair. It had gotten much longer and it pulled me down. I hated having to deal with my hair
, especially since I never knew what to do with it.

“You al
l right?” Landon asked impatiently. Just like every man, I suppose. I opened the door as I showed him how my brush had caught itself in my hair. He took one look and laughed hysterically. His laughter was infectious because I giggled too. I walked around the room jokingly with the brush still in my tangled mop.

“What,” I joked, “i
s there something wrong with me?” He fell onto the couch laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes. It was a beautiful sight, to see him happy. I yanked the brush out painfully and he stopped laughing to help.

“This hair!”
I exclaimed. “It needs to go; maybe I will get it cut this weekend. What do you think?”

He looked down at the brush in his hands and pulled out a piece of hair. H
olding it in his fingers, he twisted it. “What will Dallas think?” That was his answer?

“I am asking you
. Do you think I have the face for short hair?” I probed.

“I think you have the face to be bald, really. You could s
have your head and be beautiful.” H e met my eyes. I felt happy for just a moment, and the ache dulled. “But Dallas likes girls with long hair.” Moment over, the ache back on full force.

“Yeah
, well it’s my hair!” I sat up and pulled the mess into a ponytail and grabbed my purse. “Come on, I am starving to death.”